Thread: clear coat ?

Lacquer dries in a few seconds.
Shellac a lttle bit longer

i use shellac now and it's great but seems to be lacking something , should i be using more coats of shellac , i'm doing about 3 now , i noticed with french polishing the shellac builds up giving a real lustre, but i'm no french polisher...

Sprayed on lacquer and polyurethane give a clear gloss finish that dries fast. Most projects (even with multiple coats) can be finished in less than a day. You can also alter the gloss level and get a satin finish. And the finish is even, silky smooth, tough/ scratch resistant, water resistant, and makes the wood look beautiful.

Richard

Originally Posted by la Huerta

should i be using more coats of shellac , i'm doing about 3 now , i noticed with french polishing the shellac builds up giving a real lustre,

If you want to continue using shellac to get a french polish type lustre you need 6 coats to 10 coats depending on the thickness of the shellac. If you grain fill the wood before starting it builds a lot faster. If I'm shellacking open grained timber like red cedar I find the only way to get lustre, if I dont grain fill, is to use a 'mouse'. That is, a French polishers cotton pad, saturated with shellac.

i'm just finishing of a table now , and have done 3 coats of shelac, so i will keep putting on more coats and see what happens...i usually bees wax when it's all done which looks great, but with about 6 to 10 coats of shelac (instead of 3) it should then have the lustre i'm looking for ...

spraying would be nice but just don't have the room or ventilation...maybe when i build a big barn one day...

oh...how long should i wait between coats, is an hour ok in normal weather...

Originally Posted by la Huerta

i usually bees wax when it's all done which looks great, but with about 6 to 10 coats of shelac (instead of 3) it should then have the lustre i'm looking for ...


oh...how long should i wait between coats, is an hour ok in normal weather...

I always beewswax, especially if I want a full finish. Using Feast Watson Carnauba wax (a carnauba and beeswax mixture) I can put it on pretty thick to fill any open grain and it sets hard.

When you have a big build of shellac it pays to leave each coat to dry as long as possible For the final six coats I would only put on three a day, two to three hours apart. Make the last couple of coats thinner, to minimise streaks.

Once you have shellac'd the piece, how do you store the brush, and clean it? I think I've just ruined my nice new brush and am wondering if it is worth salvaging at all.

thanks
RufflyRustic

Metho?

just soak it in metho even if its gone rock hard the meths will clean it.

Its good practise after you clean any paintbrush to wash it thoroughly in warm soapy water.

i have some feast watson carnuaba wax here , used it a few times but went back to the straight beeswax as it seems to give an almost glass like finish, and it smells good too...

Originally Posted by rufflyrustic

...how do you store the brush, and clean it?
RufflyRustic

Good advice above; also, for storage and convenience I hang my shellac brushes in a jar of metho, where they stay permanently except when being used. I drill a small hole near the top of the handle and thread a piece of stiff wire (about 1.5mm) through it that straddles the top of the jar that has enough metho in it to cover the bristles. This way the bristles don't get bent from resting on the bottom of the jar. I place a larger container over the top to minimise evaporation.

In Balmain there is an old furniture finishing supply shope' and you can purchase a product (DULUX I think) called Stylwood. It comes in all % of gloss levels.
It dries in about 6 minutes, out of the gun. It is really strong smelling and a lot of precaution should be taken when using this product, best talk to the blokes in the shop.
This eliminates my problem with the area that the new project is drying remaining dust free.

Sounds like a nitro-cellulose lacquer

Originally Posted by gurney456

In Balmain there is an old furniture finishing supply shope' and you can purchase a product (DULUX I think) called Stylwood. It comes in all % of gloss levels.
It dries in about 6 minutes, out of the gun. It is really strong smelling and a lot of precaution should be taken when using this product, best talk to the blokes in the shop.
This eliminates my problem with the area that the new project is drying remaining dust free.

Made by Wattyl and Harry is right. It is N/C lacquers.